Thailand Physical Activity Strategy 2018-2030: Challenges and Recommendations for Improved Implementation

Abstract

Thailand Physical Activity Strategy 2018-2030 (TPAS), endorsed by the Cabinet in 2018, aims to promote sufficient physical activity among Thai people through three strategic actions: Active People, Active Places, and Active Supporting Systems. This study reviews relevant documents and convenes a group discussion with key stakholders to identify implementation challenges and recommends policies and actions. This study identifies four main implementing challenges. First, the prevailing attitudes towards sports for excellence, coupled with the lack of stakeholders’ awareness of and commitment to a comprehensive concept of physical activity impeded TPAS implementation. Second, promoting physical activity strategies did not design to accommodate different target populations through settings-based approach. Third, key implementing agencies had limited technical and implementation capacities. Lastly, physical activity in 2020 was much disrupted directly and indirectly by the COVID-19 pandemic and government measures. To overcome these challenges, we recommend the National Steering Committee and the National Adminstration Committee to maximize use of TPAS as a powerful tool to accelerate national physical activity agenda, identify and upscale successful case studies of local-context and setting-based physical activity implementation, develop monitoring astrengthen implementation capacities of relevant agencind evaluation system to track progresses, es, and keep vigilant and adaptive to the COVID-19 and future challenges.